Slayers Device
by Shaun Garin
Summary: Part of the Element EU. Perfect day on Midchilda. The sun is shining. The bees are buzzing and a restaurant owner is screaming bloody murder. Look out world, Lina Inverse is in town.
1. Chapter 1

Midchilda was in a state of panic.

Or at least their most popular downtown buffet was at least.

It had happened so quickly by all accounts; a short, flat-chested red headed young woman and a handsome if dumb looking blonde guy burst into the place and slapped down enough gold to make a person cry. And then the hurricane began.

Plates upon plates of food were devoured, and soon, the chef was cursing the names of the two patrons who had left in a hurry once they were chased out by an angry restaurant owner.

What was jarring was that the pair were dressed in what appeared to be armor of some kind. The girl's purple and yellow outfit was embroidered head to toe with silver etchings and patterns with large shoulder epaulets and a mantle. One could mistake her as being some kind of kid in a costume if it weren't for the parting Fireball she hurled at the pursuers.

Her companion had been dressed in blue with black armor with the insignia of an iron serpent on it. Something like that would have been jarring enough if it weren't for the half broken sword he carried, crying when it broke due to the way he cut a lamppost in half. He seemed to support no magic of his own but there was enough that he was definitely conditioned to soak up enough damage that it would make one think that they were both wearing barrier jackets.

"Yeesh what a mess," remarked Subaru as she looked over the damage. "Tea, what do you make of this?"

"Seems to me like we're dealing with professionals of an eat and run." Deadpanned Teana. "But what kind of group pays in gold knowing that it's not our currency and eats anyhow?"

"A crazy group?" At Teana's eyeroll, Subaru grinned. "C'mon, let's get that statement and see about finding these two multiple offenders."

* * *

On the other side of the main capital, a pair of figures appeared in a flash of light. "Ne, Mr. Zelgadis, do you think this is where Miss Lina and Mr. Gourry arrived?"

"Who knows," replied Zelgadis as his weapon collapsed into the small pendant that he slung over his neck. "Like we really have a choice. These things needed to "Return to Belka" wherever that is. It must have been some serious transportation magic if we're in a city that looks too advanced for modern society to make."

"I suppose," said Amelia as her own weapon, a staff with a filched cross on the top collapsed and her clothing returned to normal. "We should find them as quickly as possible before they manage to cause chaos around the globe."

"Good luck with that," scoffed Zelgadis as he and Amelia headed into the city, drawing some curious looks from the passerby from their obviously out of place clothing.

Zelgadis noticed it first as the people were staring at them. "Amelia," he said in a low voice, "People are looking at us."

"That's because they haven't seen avatars of justice before!" exclaimed Amelia and Zelgadis fought the urge to palm his face.

"That's not it. Our clothing: its making us stand out too much. We need better outfits." He looked up at the nearby store and smirked. "And I know where to get them."

* * *

The shopkeep was certain that he shouldn't be surprised; there were a lot of offworlders lately coming to Midchilda. But two people dressed in linen and silks, even fighters garb like they did was uncommon. Still, the gold was good, even if it wasn't the local currency.

After they had left, he put in a call to the TSAB. Weren't there supposed to be two people, a man and woman who had been terrorizing the food industry later?

* * *

"Put your hands up," commanded the lead officer of the TSAB.

Zelgadis scowled and rubbed his head. "This isn't going to go as according to plan, now is it Amelia?"

"I don't think so. And I'm pretty sure we can't reason with them since we can't understand them." Replied Amelia as the man commanded something again.

The leader of the police was frustrated. Damn offworlders, not knowing the language. "This is your last chance! Put your hands up and come quietly."

The pair looked at each other and sighed as one. And then spoke two words in unison that he was hardpressed to figure out. And then they shot into the air and soared off like a rocket.

The leader gaped and facepalmed. "Get the head office on line one."

* * *

"Four of them."

"That's right. We've heard two separate accounts. A man and a woman, both originally dressed in sorcerer gear."

Hayate rubbed her forehead. This was not going as according to plan. Didn't Kevin say she'd have days like this?

"Hayate-chan?" inquired Nanoha. "Are you okay?"

"Cursing Levin but I'll live," replied Hayate, earning a nod from Nanoha. Hayate's rivalry with Kevin Levin was LEGENDARY. "Check the database. Let's hope we're not trying to capture two different groups."

Nanoha patted her friend on the shoulder and headed out with the reports. When she was gone, Hayate pulled out a green badge and flicked it on. "Kevin?"

"Hey," replied Kevin. "So I heard you guys have some kind of problem."

"How did…? Never mind, don't answer that." Sighed Hayate. "Did we get any new people in Echo recently?"

"Not yet. Why? You've got people on your lawn that didn't come through the hall?" inquired Kevin.

"More or less. Can you look into it on your end? Discretely?"

Kevin smirked. "I'm always discrete. Later dear."

"Don't call me that!"

* * *

"Crossfire Shoot!"

How quickly everything had boiled to violence. One word to another, some mistaken language barriers, the blonde guy somehow getting the woman to smack him with a bunny slipper with enough force to topple him, and explosions began.

The balls of magic hurled out and were met solidly by a volley of flame arrows. They exploded in the middle of the courtyard and Subaru was already in the air, bringing her fist down at the blonde man who blocked it with his sword. The sword turned bright red and snapped and in an instant, he was off in the corner trying to hammer it into shape.

"You're wide open!" yelled Subaru, zooming towards her opponent but he dodged the blow.

On Teana's end, it was a ranged battle. She was dodging as much of the magical ordinance as she could, watching the young woman effortlessly fire off spell after spell. Shots rang out and the red head dodged Teana's blasts. The tone of the spell chant was familiar by now and a liquid hot fireball rocketed past Teana's head.

"I've figured out your pattern! Just surrender and we'll talk things through!" yelled Teana.

The girl bit back something decidedly foreign and swapped her spell chant. A dozen freeze arrows hurled at her and Teana snapped her weapon to dagger form to defend against them.

The blonde man was doing his best to fight Subaru without a sword but the girl came down on him like a hammer. Turning to his companion, he yelled something and the red head yelled something back.

He looked at Subaru and said something, almost apologetically. And then in a horribly mangled familiar statement, yelled "SET UP!"

Subaru leaped backwards from the explosion of power and Teana was distracted long enough from her fight as the sorceress yelled the same words. When it receded, they stood there dressed in black and silver, but the man wore a long trenchcoat. He drew a sword and Subaru swore as the sword proclaimed "JAWOUL!" at a command of his as it ignited into light.

"BELKAN!" yelled Teana as she started to dodge shots from Lina who had gotten an axe just as big as Vita's hammer and was firing blast after blast from the end of it. If it wasn't bad enough, Teana could now properly read their power levels. Just how overpowered was SSS+ anyhow? REALLY overpowered.

Teana wondered if her life was meant to be stuck with battle maniacs and ridiculously OP people.

Subaru clashed with the white blade and she yelped. That wasn't white energy, that was PURE LIGHT. The guy somehow managed to pull a sword of light on her. Wasn't that a big annoyance?

* * *

"Shouldn't we help them Mr. Zelgadis?" inquired Amelia as she watched the fight down in the courtyard.

"I don't think so. For one thing, we're not in trouble from Lina going over the edge and casting black magic." Replied Zelgadis.

"Huh? Why do you say that?"

"Can't you feel it Amelia? I know even a Priestess should be able to sense that there's a serious lack of divine or dark energies. While I'm sure Lina could muster up a few offensive black magic spells, I'm sure there's a good chance she wouldn't be able to cast any of the spells drawn on the mazoku. For obvious reasons." Said Zelgadis.

"Oh I see! We're cut off from the main spirits and energies so it's okay that Miss Lina isn't about to Dragon Slave her opponents!" Amelia laughed. "That's smart Mr. Zelgadis!"

"That's just good logic." Replied Zelgadis. "I'm sure Lina'll figure out that she can't cast Dragon Slave any time soon."

A pause.

"Any time now."

More pausing.

"Aaaaany time now."

There was a terrific screech of feminine fury.

Zelgadis grinned. "There we go."


	2. Chapter 2

Part 2

* * *

"My black magic isn't working I told you already!" yelled Lina to Gourry.

"Well isn't that a good thing? I mean, the Dragon Slave would have destroyed a lot of the buildings here." Replied Gourry as he clashed against Subaru in a furious dance of fists and swords.

"Oh don't remind me," groused Lina as she continued to fire off blasts of magic at the sharpshooter. "Man, why does everyone want to kill us here?"

"Not all of them," replied Gourry innocently. "I thought they wanted to question us for eating that guy's restaurant out of house and home!"

Lina would have faceplanted if it weren't for her quick save. "Gourry shut up!" she yelled. "Oh this is on now. GAAV…!"

A blink.

"Oh right, he's dead. Well then, Dynast Brass!"

When the pentagram failed to flare to life, Lina ground her teeth. "Damnit! Two in a row? We're really far away if I can't even summon up a Mazoku Lord's power!"

She swore. "Got no choice. Gonna do this the hard way. Elmikia Flame!"

The torrent of spirit magic hurled forward and Teana dodged to the side narrowly, careful not to get hit. She smirked. "You're wide open: FIREBALL!"

On Gourry's end, he was fighting against Subaru, the glowing sword in his hands clashing against her fists. "You know these guys are really good! I wonder where they come from?"

"Who cares Gourry just fend them off and run," snapped Lina. "Freeze Arrow!"

"Easy for you to say, this girl's actually making some headway," replied Gourry. He grinned and added, "You know she's kind of cute if she wasn't trying to kill me. OW!"

He reeled from a thrown boulder and Subaru stopped, aghast that the young woman had the strength and speed to toss a boulder at Gourry. "C'mon peanut brain!" And grabbing him, she shot off into the distance.

* * *

"There they go," said Amelia with a sigh. "As usual, Miss Lina and Mr. Gourry don't exactly have the patience to work through things, do they?"

"It can't be helped Amelia. But in any case, why don't we talk to those nice ladies down there, provided they don't try to hack our heads off." Said Zelgadis as he leaped off the building.

"Uh okay." Amelia leaped down to where Teana and Subaru were conversing in low tones. Since she was facing them, Subaru was the first one to notice their approach and dropped into a fighting stance.

"Halt!" exclaimed Subaru in her native language.

Amelia and Zelgadis came to a halt in front of them and Zelgadis cleared his throat. "I Zelgadis. This Amelia. We wish talk."

Amelia looked at Zelgadis, astounded. "How did you manage to communicate Mr. Zelgadis?"

"Their language isn't so hard to pick up," said Zelgadis. "But putting the words together is a little tricky."

Teana regarded the pair. A class. AAA maybe even. Their powers were raw, unrestrained and unlike the concentrated flow of energy through a device, both of them seemed fairly good at using their magic without having to focus it through higher math. "Teana," said Teana, tapping her chest. "TSAB. Will you come with us?"

The pair nodded. And thanking her stars, Teana and Subaru lead them away.

* * *

"We come from world. Far away. Four staves, upon sea of chaos. Ruby Eye, is high mazoku of world." Zelgadis sipped his coffee, thankful that these people could brew a good cup. "Found these, talismans. Say return to Belka. We take, they return."

Rein, the little device nodded. "Confirmed, they're Ancient Belkan devices, the lost four prototype weapons. Halbard, Staff, Sword and Hammer. Each one of them are capable of interfacing with magics not of Ancient Belka."

"Magic, ambient, powerful, draw on spirits and energies of holy and darkness," said Amelia, having picked up a little of the language. And the slow translation of their words were being displayed with a few errors here and there. "I priestess."

"Heartless Mystical Swordsman," said Zelgadis. A couple of the assembled people read it over again and he smirked.

Hayate steeped her fingers. "Do you mean us any harm?"

Zelgadis barked a laugh. "No. Is only wanting to go home. Maybe harm to buffets."

"Sounds like people after my own heart," said Rein enviously. Teana and Subaru giggled to the side.

"Ma'am," said an aid as he walked in. "Sightings of the two lost logia users in a buffet just off Cross Street has been located."

"Lina, Gourry," said Zelgadis. "Eat a lot. Danger to buffet owners."

"We should go then," said Teana. "Can we ask for your assistance?"

"Is good idea, if not wanting shop front blown out," said Amelia, standing up and brushing her white fighters outfit off.

As they left, Subaru remarked, "I really like their capes."

* * *

"Man this grub is good," said Lina as she ate at a pace that would dizzy most spectators. She wrestled with the roast, tearing it in half with Gourry on the other end. "Gourry!"

"I'm hungry Lina!" whined Gourry as he swallowed half of it in a single bite."

"You guys never change," said Zelgadis from the entrance. "Hey."

"Zel, Amelia! Hey what's the big idea coming in here with the fuzz?" demanded Lina of Teana and Subaru who hung back sheepishly.

"Calm down you two, they just wanted to ask us about the ancient relics," replied Zelgadis. "You know, the things that brought us here in the first place?"

"Oh I see. Still there was no reason for us to be arrested! HEY GOURRY THAT'S MY CHICKEN!"

Subaru sidled up to Amelia and whispered, "They always eat like this?"

"All the time," sighed Amelia. "On my father's tab too…"

"Father?" inquired Subaru, curious.

"Father Prince of Seyruun. Amelia is a princess," replied Amelia and Subaru got a starry expression in her eyes.

"A princess? Really? Oh my gosh, Tia, did you hear that?" gushed Subaru, happy she met a princess.

"I heard, now stop drooling Subaru, we can go visit her shining castle and possibly hunky father too later," said Tia. She didn't quite understand when Zelgadis broke into a coughing fit.


	3. Chapter 3

03

* * *

"Sending them home is going to be trickier than we thought, but doable," said Chrono, the Admiral assigned to this case. "It's a matter of locating their home dimension than actually transporting them home."

"So we're looking at about three or four more days until we can get a positive identification on where they'll be heading home. Until then we've put them up in a hotel. Hopefully they won't cause too much trouble for us." The last was said with a little grin from Hayate, who had come to like them for their energy.

"What about the devices they're holding onto?" inquired Nanoha curiously. "Are they going to be separated from them?"

Chrono shook his head. "The Belkan devices have chosen their masters, so it would be a shame to remove them. Already three out of four of them are working on studying our magic, as well as learning how the cartridge system works. They had no cartridges when they first arrived."

"What about the fourth? Mr. Gabriev," said Fate curiously.

Hayate laughed lightly. "Unfortunately, Mr. Gabriev has a mind like a sieve, and can't even manage to memorize any spells. But his innate fighting prowess is remarkable, and well trained. We'll have to teach him though how to maintain Sword though."

"We're going to send a small delegation to their homeland, and possibly set up in the city that they call Seyruun," added Chrono. "With them vouching for us, we should be able to establish diplomatic relationships with their ruling bodies."

"Reports will be filed to everyone in the coming days. Dismissed."

* * *

Zelgadis was a curious man, and was definitely interested in their branch study of Familiars. While it wasn't quite like creating a Chimera, it was also an area of study that was long since defunct in their homeworld, since familiars had a tendency of turning on their creator and dicing them into little cubes.

"Trying to figure out how to turn yourself back to normal, Zel?" inquired Lina who looked up from her book that read "Advanced Belkan-type Bombardment Spells".

"Not really," replied Zelgadis as he turned a page. "I might however want to try my hand at constructing a Familiar. I was very impressed with their work on artificial life, and I'd rather much prefer them to have a mind of their own instead of slovenly dedicated to a cause."

"Like that Arf girl, right?" inquired Lina, thinking of the tiny little wolf girl. "She is pretty cute, huh."

Amelia frowned. "But isn't familiar research similar to copies?"

"Not necessarily, at least not in this brand of research," said Zelgadis. "I was thinking that if I created a brand of familiar that was similar to Mid or Belkan research, and then helped them grow and nurture, maybe I'd be able to find a way to eventually change myself back. BUT considering what Rezo said a few months ago, I'd find that unlikely." He smiled. "I've always wanted someone to talk to on the road since, y'know…"

Since Zolf and Rodimus died. The two most loyal to him, after Dilgear and Nuunsa proved themselves to be more loyal to the maddened Rezo. Lina nodded. "I understand. So you're finally giving up on the whole body thing?"

"What other choice do I have?" Despite his words, Zelgadis had a little smile. "I can't blame Rezo for everything anymore. After the whole incident with Pokota and the Hellmaster's Jar, I can only feel like I've found what I needed to know, despite the heartbreak."

"You got closure," said Lina. "Closure you didn't get last time. And despite everything, you actually still love him, don't you?"

Zelgadis coughed. "Let's not get carried away here. He was my enemy for years, y'know."

"Sure, sure," dismissed Lina. "Whatcha got there, Amelia?"

"Oh, it's a series of books on the medical arts that the people of Mid have, as well as a study on Lost Logia by one Yuuno Scrya," said Amelia, holding up the books respectively. "I heard the term while I was looking around in the library a while ago, and Mr. Yuuno gave me this book he wrote himself."

"Logia, huh, so that's what they call artifacts in this place?" inquired Lina.

"Yeah, they're apparently lost items from a civilization from before the founding of the modern society. Maybe some of these items will help identify the things we've got in our world. I would certainly think the Claire Bible is one of them," answered Amelia.

"You don't say. Huh. Where's Gourry by the way?"

"He was called out by that Signum woman, presumably to fight. I would imagine they're tearing up a battlefield by now," answered Zelgadis. "I was invited as well, but I wanted to read up on Familiars before I joined them."

* * *

Signum had to admit that Gourry Gabriev was one of the most top notch opponents she had ever fought before. He was deadly with pinpoint accuracy, matching her own skills. It was also clear that he was skilled innately in magic, but he lacked the focus to cast spells. In short, the Belkan-style device Sword was perfect for him.

**"Explosion!"** crowed Levantine as Signum loaded a cartridge and Gourry took a moment to try it out himself.

**"Explosion!"** barked Sword, a phrase that made Signum smile a little as she lifted her sword. Both sides were bloodied and aching, but both wore matching grins. "You're very good, Gourry."

"You're better than I expected too, Signum," said Gourry as he hefted Sword. "I usually don't make a habit of fighting women, but I can definitely make an exception."

"My, aren't you the chivalrous one." And the pair clashed together as a couple of figures stood down near the training center deck watching them fight.

"How long have they been at it?" inquired Subaru as Teana worked on the board.

"They're getting close to breaking Signum and Nanoha's record of 22 minutes and 15 seconds," replied Teana as Gourry feinted and Signum barely brought up Leavantine in time to parry the cross strike. "Both of them just seem to get better with each blow."

"They're both a couple of battle maniacs," remarked Subaru. "I kinda wanna fight Mr. Gourry now too!"

Teana laughed. "Well, it would be enlightening."

"Shinden… ISSEN!"

"Riot STORM!"

Twin attacks crashed together in a flurry of hits and in a cloud of smoke, the pair flew backwards, breathing heavily. Both had wounds across the front of their jackets, deep scoring hits that showed the last protective layers. "Not bad," said Signum, Leavantine expelling the spent cartridge and Gourry's Sword doing the same. "I really am impressed."

"Same," replied Gourry, breathing just as heavily as Signum was. "Let's finish this. I'm getting pretty hungry."

"Sounds like a plan."

* * *

The cafeteria had been put on overtime as they were now feeding people with enormous appetites, and when Signum and Gourry walked in it was no exception. Signum wasn't a big eater usually, but the entire experience with Gourry left her shaking and needing food as quickly as possible.

Bringing over huge bowls of pasta and towering stacks of meat, the pair began to eat, and even that began to turn into a competition when Lina and the others arrived. "Hey, Lina, you're missing out on great food," called out Gourry as he fought Signum fork to fork.

"You two look like you went through a battlefield!" exclaimed Amelia, staring at the dirty and bloodied pair who fought over their food. "What did you do?"

"Sparring," replied Signum as she parried Gourry's fork and sent it spiraling upwards. She quickly ninjaed one of his buns and he reclaimed his carrots.

"Two of them," remarked Lina with a facepalm.

"Three if you count yourself, Lina," smirked Zelgadis who was then bonked on the head.

Chanting a healing spell, Amelia applied it to the pair. "You shouldn't fight so eagerly till the pair of you are bloodied up! Think of yourselves for once!"

"We were! We were just having a good time!" exclaimed Gourry as Signum stole his meat.

* * *

"It certainly is more lively here now that we have guests," said Hayate, leaning back in her chair. "Everyone's having a good time."

"Really does seem like it," said Rein as she read over reports as a video of Signum and Gourry's spar was playing out. "Signum's having fun, though I think Vita is feeling left out."

"She shouldn't have pushed herself that hard," replied Vita as she leaned back in her chair, putting her feet up. "Going all out against Nanoha is one thing. Going all out against some guy is another."

"They took care of themselves," giggled Shamal. "Although Signum's conked out right now."

It was true, with Signum in her room sleeping and grumbling as she turned over.

"Well, I'm just glad everyone's okay and we'll have them home soon," said Hayate as she relaxed after a good supper that evening.

* * *

Amelia looked over the books again as she wandered the Infinite Library's halls, floating upwards. There was so much to learn, and this was like a vacation to her.

"Mr. Yuuno!" called out Amelia as she looked up at the head librarian who adjusted his glasses. "I've come to return the book I borrowed."

"Oh, you've finished it already?" inquired Yuuno as he took the book back from Amelia. "Did you find it interesting?"

Amelia nodded. "It was a big help, thanks!"

Yuuno grinned, rubbing his head a little. "I'm just glad I could be of help."

"Yeah, it's a big help. Although I kind of will miss our stay here when we do leave," said Amelia, floating to a sitting position.

"How long until they pinpoint your home dimension?" inquired Yuuno, floating back in a relaxed position.

"They said about three more days. They want to make sure they don't accidentally miss our world," said Amelia. "But there's a lot of stuff to do, a lot of things to learn and plenty to experience! We're the first people to journey outside our world; and yet it'll be hard to leave all of this behind."

"I know the feeling," said Yuuno. "I'd love to come and visit your world and study its ruins, discover lost spells and new abilities…"

"Why don't you come?" inquired Amelia. "Someone of your talents could certainly be welcome in Seyruun?"

Yuuno paused in thought and chuckled. "Would I be allowed to? The TSAB's not fond of sending people too often to Unadministered Worlds just for a vacation at time." Earth excluded, since it seemed to be a hotbed of weirdness.

"I'm sure we can arrange it. After all I could cite you as my diplomatic ambassador!" exclaimed Amelia. She gave him a wide grin. "After all, that's what people do for each other right?"

Yuuno had to laugh at that. "You've got a point. Alright, I'll see about clearing it with the higher ups."


	4. Chapter 4

Part 4

* * *

Along the streets of Midchilda, death stalked.

It was powerful. It was terrifying.

It also had very large breasts.

Naga the White Serpent was bored out of her gourd as she wandered the streets, dressed in casual clothing which was beyond ODD for the girl. Having traded in her usual battle bikini, which was a hand-me-down from her mother (and considering the family line, we should all be but blessed that Amelia is completely unaware of this), for a pair of tight fitting slacks, tennis shoes and a purple t-shirt, Naga was in a mood that day.

**Meister fühlst du dich gut heute abend?** inquired a pendant at her neck.

"Just a little depressed Panzer," replied Naga as she turned the corner, hands in her pockets. "It's been a few months since I arrived here and there's nothing to DO!"

**Kopf hoch mein Herr, ich bin sicher, wir können etwas zu tun finden,** supplied the device helpfully.

Naga nodded as she headed down towards the buffet and to her surprise, found it closed. The owner was hanging a sign on the front and she inquired, "Excuse me, but what's going on here?"

"Ah, got eaten out of business," replied the owner. "That hurricane of a redhead came by along with her stupid blond friend and before I knew it, they had eaten most of my stock. If it weren't for the TSAB helping me out and footing extra for the bill, I'd be ruined! As such I'm just waiting for the delivery truck to arrive."

"A redhead? Tell me, is she sort of short, flat-chested and with red eyes and hair, wearing a sorceress outfit in yellow and red?" inquired Naga, her hopes rising.

"Hmm? Yeah, she a friend of yours?"

Naga couldn't help it as she brought her hand to her face and laughed. "OHOHOHOHOHOHOHOHO! The Gods must be good to me, I Naga the White Serpent! For they brought my eternal rival to Midchilda, so we could have a one-on-one battle to settle on who is the strongest in the land!"

The man cringed at the tone. "Look, I dunno what you're planning, but I'm sure they can work it all out. Right?"

Naga grinned wolfishly. This would be GOOD.

And hey, it beat being an amnesiac suit of armor any day.

* * *

Lina felt a chill crawl up her spine that night as she sat up in bed. "What… was that?"

"What was what, Miss Lina?" inquired Amelia from her bed, curled up on her side.

"I just thought… oh never mind, I just had a chill go up my spine," said Lina. "Well, good night!"

And she flopped back to bed.

* * *

The TSAB training ground was full of people again who had come out to see the four from the other world in action. They were in a pitched melee, using only devices and for the note, Zelgadis and Gourry were put on opposite teams to make it fair.

"You guys are relentless!" exclaimed Lina as she parried a strike from Zelgadis and followed it up by a flight spell which shot her into the air. "Remind me why I haven't fought you in years?"

"Because I'm not chasing you down for the Philosopher's Stone anymore," pointed out Zelgadis helpfully.

"Ah, that would do. Axe! Load Cartridge!"

**Jawoul!** The oddly named Axe pumped once and it changed form from its default hammer form to an actual axe.

"You know I never got why it was named Axe," said Zelgadis thoughtfully.

"Maybe there was competition between it and Graf Eisen?" inquired Amelia.

"Maybe the designers couldn't decide!" supplied Gourry helpfully. "I mean, you don't see Signum calling her sword Whippy, now do you?"

"That's not exactly helpful," remarked Lina, hanging her head.

"Well let's continue. Load Cartridge!" ordered Zel and Halberd pumped once, followed by the others. His halberd changed form into a chain whip while Amelia's staff adjusted into a bow and Gourry's sword changed into a large zweihander.

Suddenly, an icy blast of magic rushed by the pair, narrowly missing Gourry, who yelped and dodged. "What was that?" he demanded.

Eizapfen Schießen, stated a male voice from the side as more icicles rained down on the pair.

"That technique!" exclaimed Lina.

"OHOHOHOHOHOHOHO!"

"That laugh!" exclaimed Zelgadis, a chill going up his spine.

"LINA INVERSE!" howled a familiar voice.

"It can't be! Miss Namu?" finished Amelia as they all looked up.

Tall. Black haired. Spiked armor. Bikini. Enormous breasts.

Naga the White Serpent threw her head back and laughed as she held a smoking ornate pistol. "I finally found you, Lina!"

**Guten Morgen,** said the gun politely.

Everyone gaped. And then Lina exploded.

"WHERE THE HELL DID YOU GET A DEVICE? FOR THAT MATTER, HOW ARE YOU EVEN HERE?"

"Wouldn't you like to know where I got it? I'll tell you! It was with me when I woke up!" laughed Naga again. "But no matter! Come now, Lina, it's time to settle this once and for all! And with no Dragon Slave, I've got the upper hand—and plenty of experience with my friend. Panzer, let's go!"

The barrel pumped twice, loading two cartridges and the robotic sounding voice spoke again. **Kanoneform.**

The weapon reshaped itself, parts changing and expending until Naga was holding a massive shoulder-mounted gattling cannon. "As they say on Non-Admininstered Planet 97: Say hello to my little friend!"

"… Oh man," groaned Zelgadis moments before Naga opened fire.

* * *

It was a miserable battle, one for the history books.

The simple training battle had turned into an all out fire-fest, and although the damage was kept to the training grounds, the frustration Lina had that she couldn't resort to Plan A, a.k.a. Dragon Slave, was tangible.

Despite her boasts and it being four against one, Naga had demonstrated that she was indeed very skilled with Panzer, and her famous eye-drawing armor that Lina remembered her cutting herself on all the time had been retooled into her barrier jacket.

Naga was fast, strong, and skilled, but finally they had managed to pin her down and disarm her.

Now with Naga pouting and in binds, Hayate was facepalming. "Just how long have you been here, Miss Naga?"

"About a half a year now," replied Naga. "I got sucked into this world by Panzer and haven't left. Although I was debating on returning back home later, I never got around to doing so!"

"So that's why you never sought us out after the incident with the Hellmaster's Jar!" exclaimed Amelia, putting two and two together. And now that she was looking at "Namu" in the eye, she realized without a doubt that this was her big sister. She was holding onto that revelation for later, as Lina was laying on the couch nursing a bump where Naga had demonstrated that shoulder-mounted gattling guns CAN be used to pistol whip someone.

"Got it in one," replied Naga. "I managed to make a place for myself after sharing a couple of spells, just healing stuff mostly. I've got an apartment on fourth."

"What I want to know is how did you manage to find Panzer in the first place?" inquired Zelgadis. "The four of us found ours in a ruin."

"And to date, there has only been record of four prototype devices from the ancient Belkan era," remarked Hayate, folding her hands in thought as well. "Who gave you this?"

Naga shrugged. "When I woke up, I found myself holding onto it. I figured it was one of the things that I pilfered from Rezo's lab before touching the jar. He introduced himself as Panzer, and had been keeping an eye on me while I slept, making sure my body didn't decay."

"Decay?" yelped Amelia and Gourry looked a little sick. "Were you buried?"

"No, no, just stuck in a box of oranges for some reason," said Naga dismissively. "Look, I like it here. Even if there isn't any Mazoku on this part of the staff, none that's active, I wouldn't mind staying and studying a little more."

"Huh, who'd have thought you like studying," remarked Lina from her prone position, shifting the ice pack.

"Hmph! I'll have you know I'm a very good student," sniffed Naga. "You don't get to become a powerful sorceress by carrying around a little cheat sheet."

* * *

Somewhere, Nagi Springfield sneezed.

* * *

"That reminds me: what part of the staff are we on?" inquired Zelgadis curiously.

"Death Fog's," replied Naga instantly. "This world has a history of what we like to call the Fog of War, and both Mazoku and Shinzoku are dormant, at least according to history."

"You seem sure of it," said Hayate. "Even if this is a staff world, what else do you know about it?"

"I did my research. I just KNOW," said Naga resolutely. "Black Magic, at least the normal types from our world doesn't work, so I know that we can't be on Ruby-Eye's. And if we were in Darkstar's world we wouldn't be alive to tell the tale." Getting looks from her friends, she smirked. "What, do you think I didn't listen to Amelia telling me all that stuff when I was a soul in a suit of armor?"

"Amelia, you told Naga everything?" exclaimed Zelgadis.

"But Namu, I mean, Naga and I were bonding!" whined Amelia.

"That only leaves Chaotic Blue and Death Fog. I'm almost a hundred percent sure that this is Death Fog's world," finished Naga. "I spent a lot of time in that library of theirs, and I figure that it should work out in the end."

"Well, as long as the local Mazoku or Shinzoku don't pop in and say hello, we shouldn't have a problem," said Lina.

* * *

"Naga? Are you out here?" inquired Amelia as she approached the girl, who was back in her regular clothing. Panzer could be seen sticking out of her pocket.

"Yeah, I'm here," replied Naga, turning to look at Amelia. Her expression softened into a smile. "Been a long time, little sister."

"Too long," replied Amelia, moving to stand by her sister on the balcony. "Daddy worries a lot about you. We don't hear much other than the monthly letter. And when those stopped coming…"

"Hey, squirt," said Naga, putting her hand on Amelia's head and ruffling her hair. "I get into trouble all the time, and I always pull through. But what I encounter is so much tamer than what you guys have done."

"Mou," moaned Amelia, letting her sister ruffle her hair like she did so long ago when they were living together. "I just worry! For about a year or more you never wrote, and then you sent one letter six months ago with a line of 'I'm on a journey and I don't know when I'll be back.' That worried us. Daddy almost sent out soldiers to drag you home!"

"Dad couldn't do that. Protective he might be, but he knows I need my space," said Naga. She sighed. "Look, sis, I know you're going to ask me to come home with you. I'll try to, but I won't guarantee that I'll stay. I'm learning magic here that I never got a chance to learn. I'm getting close to being able to teleport myself now."

Amelia blinked. "Really? I didn't know you were studying here."

"Something's got to keep me busy," replied Naga. "Don't look so down, I'll come home with you guys. But I'll be on the first transport back here soon."

"There's something else, isn't there?" inquired Amelia softly. "You don't want to return for a big reason."

Naga nodded, sighing. "I'm… thinking of retiring from the sorceress thing, the adventuring type at least. I had a good run with Lina, and I relived the glory days. But sis, I'm almost twenty-four now. I need to learn how to do…" she shivered. "Domestic stuff. Eew."

Amelia nodded. She wasn't very domestic either, but she knew her older sister loathed doing that stuff. "You know, Miss Hayate's talking about establishing contact with our world. We could try that. You could be our voice here."

"Me? A diplomat? Panzer and I would shoot someone if we had to do that," chuckled Naga. "I've always been a woman of action."

Amelia smiled at that. "We'll find a way around it."

"True." Naga patted her sister's head again. "Good to see you again, little sis."

* * *

"Hey, Zel, I need you toguhurk," exclaimed Lina, her usual remarks dying on the lips as Zelgadis looked up, naked as a jaybird and with a magic circle at his feet. What was really important about this was that he was pink-skinned with soft violet hair. And Gourry was looking at his body from behind going, "I think you need to be softer here," and poking at his back.

"…"

"…"

Mechanically Lina turned around, shut the door and decided she needed a cold shower.

Inside, Zelgadis looked over his shoulder at Gourry. "What was that all about?"

"I dunno," said Gourry. "Hey, Zel, you missed a spot."

"Where?"

"Left cheek."


End file.
